No, this column is not about Democrats, nor American liberals. As a society, we’ve abused the word liberal so much that it now bears little resemblance to its former self. In its literal context, liberalism is a political philosophy focused on liberty and equality; it focuses on rights, freedom and equality under the law. As a result of this focus, liberalism is inextricably tied to capitalism, a system in which goods and services are produced for profit in a market economy, as neither can truly exist without the presence of the other.

Modern scholarship blasts capitalism as naturally exploitative, unsustainable and greedy. Writers point to colonialism, imperialism and the runaway greed of the Gilded Age as representative of the true effects of capitalism.

This view is, of course, extremely hypocritical. On one hand, critics of capitalism point to its checkered past as an indicator of its future, but they also act as apologists for the failures of current and past socialist states, claiming that true socialism hasn’t yet happened.

True capitalism, however, requires that all participants follow the same rules. The past “examples” critics draw on have all involved direct oppression and subjugation of the many by the few, which by definition cannot happen in a liberal society. In a liberal society, everyone has the same rights and freedoms, and the state, which has a monopoly of the legitimate use of force, does not give anyone special privileges. As evidenced by government subsidies, tax breaks and bailouts, true liberalism is still a work in progress, as our current political system gives far too much political leverage to those with money.

Liberalism does not necessarily require democracy – it only requires the government to stand up for the rights of all and justly enforce the law. Just about any government type can fulfill these requirements, from the Platonic idea of rule by “Philosopher Kings” to direct democracy. Our republic allows us the easiest way to achieve democracy, as it holds its citizens accountable without requiring them to concern themselves with its daily operations. The best government is one that can protect the rights of, and provide services to, its constituents while wasting as little as possible of the average person’s time.

It is liberalism, not democracy, that we should export to other countries. Each nation needs a concrete constitution that protects the rights of the few from the tyranny of the majority that can, and often does, easily occur in a solely democratic system.

A prime example of this protection is found in recent events in Egypt. After the revolt which ended the authoritarian rule of President Hosni Mubarak, Egypt held supposedly free elections, in which Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood defeated former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq.

Shafiq’s campaign made more than 100 complaints about ballot rigging by the Muslim Brotherhood. A spokesman said: “The Muslim Brotherhood systematic election violations prove how they do not believe in freedom of choice and democracy unless it brings them to power.”

Following his win, Morsi solely represented the interests of his own party, as he simply did not need to consider, or even care about, the large proportion of the population that didn’t agree with his policies. In a mere democracy, the spoils go to the majority (or in some cases, the plurality), and subject the minority to the majority or plurality’s will.

Liberalism necessitate a state’s citizens to respect the enumerated rights of others in exchange for reciprocal respect of their rights. With people free of life-threatening chaos, capitalism can then bloom. Similarly, only capitalism can maintain liberalism: so long as there is an individual actor that controls the means and distribution of goods, whether that actor is a monarch or a democratic majority, the people are neither free nor equal.

By equal, I mean under the law. Equality of outcome is as absurd as it is impossible. As written in Federalist No. 10, “the diversity in the faculties of men, from which the rights of property originate, is not less an insuperable obstacle to a uniformity of interests.” Just as we cannot fix the fact that at no point in time will everyone agree on anything, so too must we accept that we all have varying levels of ability, and thus will achieve varying levels of success.

Liberalism is the culmination of law, and the end of a logical procession from the very idea of society. The greatest nations the world has ever seen are liberal democracies, and there exists no evidence to suggest this will change anytime soon. As the world becomes smaller, liberalism shall continue to spread, and society will become a better place for everyone.

Stefan Herlitz is a Collegian columnist and can be reached at [email protected].